BAR rules on teardown estimates take effect; towing disclosure sparks widespread industry concern

The Bureau of Automotive Repair (BAR) adopted new rules that expanded and clarified "teardown" estimate and teardown-disclosure requirements for automotive repair dealers, and those rules took effect July 1. The changes require repair shops to provide a clear description of the portion of a vehicle to be disassembled, include maximum reassembly time and costs on the estimate, and add new disclosure language when a repair is being billed in whole or in part to a third-party payer such as an insurer.

The bureau’s move to require separate documentation for towing fees touched off the largest debate of the meeting, with collision repair associations, individual shop owners and insurance representatives saying the change will cause operational burdens, billing confusion and consumer confusion unless BAR clarifies how the rule should be applied.

BAR officials told the advisory group the towing clause was adopted only after staff discovered text in Vehicle Code section 22651.07 and related customer-towing notices indicating towing authorizations and invoices should be handled separately from repair estimates. BAR presenters said separating the towing paperwork was intended to align industry paperwork with that statute and to reduce downstream regulatory and investigative complications.

"Tear down regulations are not new. They've been in the Automotive Repair Act since 1978," said Matthew Gibson, program manager, Field Operations and Enforcement Division, while explaining the bureau's intent.…